Kion was a warrior of the Wanugha tribe. In the 12th century, he won a crushing victory over the Almohads. But it was all too short-lived, even before the Caliphate had sent more troops. So, to save his tribe from misfortune, he exiled himself to Eg...
WARNING: This chapter contains descriptions of things that are not recommended for the very young or for sensitive people.
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In the coolness of this landscape of endless rocks and breathtaking rocky pythons of the two defiles of each of the two Iron Gates, men were constantly on the move, some hiding in nature, the color of their skins blending very well with that of the soil, and others leaving for the villages to gather information.
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With that, Anga, a freed Christian slave of Occitan origin, who served as a lookout for the Wanugha army, raced between hills and passes like a flying eagle, dodging stones that might cause her to fall in her marathon.
Then she stopped at the foot of the highest peak in the region, caught her breath, then looked up, returning her gaze to the summit, where she saw four familiar silhouettes. "Go on! 240 feet to go!" she said to herself.
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–"It won't be easy," sighed Abou Abbas Kion Usimba as he contemplated the coveted passage through the iron gates with his three other companions. "Many of us will fall here. Anyone who doesn't want to go can go home, I wouldn't blame him. Tell that to the others too.".
–"What art thou whining about, bro?" Bunga jocked in their native Kabyle language. "We're going to win this damned battle, by the Saints! Wallah, and what's more, it'll be fun."
Bunga put his hand on his friend's shoulder to comfort him, the memory of the Hilalians' defeat by the Almohads at Setif still fresh in everyone's mind. They both gazed out over the infinite spring landscape of the Bibans mountains, the greenery visible from Bouira to Medjana and beyond.
Kion felt a refreshing draught for the four men, heads surmounted by shesh (chèche), dressed in shirts and sarouels (pants) held by a belt, topped by a Kachabia, or burnous, in which they were all hooded. Kion tried to find most of his militiamen a mesh, a helmet or something for protect themselves, but it wasn't enough and practically only veterans of the wars against the Hilalians or that of the Normans managed to have the full outfit.
